Brencis does not plan to give up Saeima seat after raid in EU funds case
Mārtiņš Brencis, dismissed as adviser to the Latvian prime minister, denies any wrongdoing after searches and questioning in a European Public Prosecutor's Office case. He says he will not give up his seat in the 15th Saeima.
Mārtiņš Brencis (AS), a member of the 15th Saeima, Latvia's parliament, who has been dismissed as adviser to Prime Minister Andris Kulbergs, said on 28 October that he does not intend to give up his parliamentary mandate. He stressed that he has done nothing unlawful and that his hands are clean. The question is still to be discussed within his party's parliamentary group.
Searches and criminal proceedings
On Wednesday, Latvia's Corruption Prevention and Combating Bureau (KNAB) carried out searches in a case opened by the European Public Prosecutor's Office (EPPO). The case concerns suspected procurement fraud and abuse of office in connection with the use of European Union funds in a project of the Alūksne municipality. Brencis was also detained in this proceeding.
Brencis said investigators arrived at his home in the morning, carried out procedural actions and took away data storage devices and documents. This was followed by an hour-long conversation with a prosecutor about a project in Alūksne supervised by the Central Finance and Contracting Agency (CFLA). He was then released. Brencis is a person against whom criminal proceedings have been opened, but he has not been given the status of a suspect and no specific charge has been brought against him.
He said the case concerns events four years ago, when he worked at the CFLA, and has nothing to do with his current political activity. He expressed hope that those responsible would be held accountable.
Career and declared data
Public broadcaster LSM reports that Brencis has long experience in public administration, especially in EU funds and public investment. He joined the Prime Minister's Office on 1 June this year. Earlier he headed the CFLA and the Finance Ministry's EU Funds Department, and he also sits on the University of Latvia Council.
According to the State Revenue Service database, Brencis was CFLA director in 2018 and deputy director from 2019 to 2025. Last year his Saeima salary was 44,899 euros, and he received a salary of 24,653 euros from the CFLA.
